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Alex the Astronaut’s See You Soon EP Out This Friday

By:Gemma Dunsmore / 5 October 2017

There is a very small select group of people in this world that are able to say that they have been praised by superstar singer, pianist and composer Elton John and have it be a true fact. Young Sydney songwriter Alex the Astronaut is one of those people, with John playing her most recent single ‘Not Worth Hiding’ on his Beats1 radio show Rocket Hour. Before playing the song, John had some kind words to say about Alex the Astronaut and Australian talent in general. “I don’t know what it is with Australia at the moment, but they keep producing the most fantastic music and the artist’s keep getting younger and younger,” he exclaimed, “here’s a girl called Alex the Astronaut and it’s called ‘Not Worth Hiding’. The lyrics are fabulous…it’s wonderful.”

The single in which John played was taken off Alex the Astronauts forthcoming second EP See You Soon – which is set to be released this Friday, October 6th via her own label Minkowski Records. Along with ‘Not Worth Hiding’, the EP features four shiny new songs which are all just as beautifully written with vivid train-of-thought narratives that lead in front of a simple acoustic background.

Courtesy of Ian Laidlaw

Working once again with established producer Ben McCarthy, See You Soon follows Alex the Astronaut’s debut EP To Whom It May Concern which featured the singles ‘Already Home’ and ‘Rockstar City’. The main differences between the two EP’s seems to be the different experiences Alex the Astronaut was living as she was writing them. To Whom It May Concern brimmed with exciting and daunting new experiences after living in New York City on a soccer scholarship whilst studying maths and physics, whereas See You Soon shows Alex the Astronaut allowing herself to reflect and hints at the shellshock of coming back home after experiencing the world. “I had to make friends again, I had to rebuild relationships,” Alex the Astronaut explained.

‘Not Worth Hiding’, the single from the EP, was written as an open and honest letter to Alex the Astronaut’s 16-year-old self which details the journey to owning her own sexuality. This song is extremely important with the discussions of marriage equality happening in Australia at the moment, Pedestrian TV said it best; “could not have come at a better time”. Since its release, ‘Not Worth Hiding’ has already made a quite an impact as Alex the Astronaut was invited to perform the single live at the Marriage Equality Rally in Sydney. Many people will be able to relate and feel the words in this raw and deeply personal track which is bounded together with thumping drums and simple chords. Watch Alex the Astronaut perform ‘Not Worth Hiding’ for triple j’s Like a Version below.

“To bring together the personal and the political without feeling preachy or insincere is not an easy task, but Alex made it seem like child’s play.”– Daily Telegraph

The four other songs on the EP that will be released on Friday are entirely new. Dreamy track ‘Reflector’ is about the confusion of growing up – Alex the Astronaut explains the meaning as, “being really young and not knowing what you’re doing.” The song also pivots around a spoken-word cameo from her grandmother. ‘What Sydney Looks Like in June’ is the song about coming home and finding herself a tourist in her hometown. The loves-struck ‘William and Georgia’ as well as the finger-picked, string-laden lament ‘New York’ both discuss the difficulty of distance – Alex the Astronaut says, “they’re about saying goodbye to people.” All five songs on See You Soon are sure to be a hit with both music listeners and critics alike and will strengthen Alex the Astronaut’s standing as one of the most exciting young songwriters of our time.

“Her unique and personal songs feature the kinds of narratives that make you sit in the car long after arriving at your destination just to hear the end of the story.”– Courier Mail

Alex the Astronaut will be venturing on a national Australian tour in October and November with headline shows in Brisbane, Byron Bay, Sydney, Wollongong, Melbourne, and Perth. Make sure to book your tickets quick so you don’t miss out on seeing all of these empowering song’s live.